There is a very significant process occurring on Bainbridge that is getting no coverage in the Review.

The City Planning Commission and council are working on an update to the Bainbridge Island Shoreline Master Plan (SMP) that may have major impacts on thousands of island residents.

There are over 1,600 existing built shoreline lots and more as yet unbuilt. Draft changes to the plan include changing shoreline designations and associated usage rules.

About 35 percent of these properties are already considered “non-conforming” to existing rules. This will increase to over 50 percent with the new Plan.

About 42 percent of our shoreline will be designated with a new “Residential Conservancy” category, and our major bays (including Fletcher Bay, Murden Cove and Point Monroe Lagoon) will be changed to “Aquatic Conservancy” – each with their own new and more restrictive usage rules. All of this is being done in excess of what is being required by the State Department of Ecology.

The Planning Commission says that existing uses (like docks and bulkheads) may be continued and maintained, but elsewhere in the plan it says “legally established non-conforming uses are intended to be phased out over time.” As always, the devil is in the details and it is very important to get the language of these rules exactly right and clear for future interpretation.

Clearly this is a complex and important story; and it is moving quickly – council is due to vote on final rules in December. Important meetings and decisions are occurring weekly. Citizens deserve to be informed while they can still have their say.

Yet week after week I look for information in the Review about it and see nothing. Please prioritize this more highly for your local news coverage.

Peter McCormick

Bainbridge Island